hopelesslybourgeois

Sporadic reader, first time poster. Hi!

I'm newish to points and miles and, more importantly, not very good at them. I would like to use miles to buy my BFF a ticket to Maui for my wedding, but I'm kind of appalled that for most systems her ticket from LA will be as many miles as mine from DC. My google found that Avios and Virgin America have mileage reqs based on distance and would be more reasonable. I have Chase points that I can transfer. Here's what I'm trying to confirm before proceeding.

BA Avios can be used on AA but not Hawaiian, even though I could use AA miles to get a flight on Hawaiian--is this right?
Also, I can transfer Chase points to Virgin Atlantic but not Virgin America. Is there a mechanism to use Virgin Atlantic miles on Virgin America.

Thanks much for any guidance you can offer!

biggestbopper

IMHO, using miles to OGG from the West Coast is often not cost effective. Sometimes it is better to just buy a ticket. Also, keep in mind that sometimes you can go to HNL and then get a separate flt to Maui and come out ahead.

No doubt other FTers will have some more interesting thoughts.

u2g0d

One of the best uses of Avios is to book (direct) flights from the West coast to Hawaii. I believe they're only 12.5k miles one way on Alaska and AA.

nux

You can only redeem avios through BAEC on BA partners. Hawaiian is not a BA partner, however AS is.

You can redeem Virgin Atlantic miles on Virgin America. See: http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/gb/en...n-america.html

However I suggest you look for award availability first before transferring to either. Note you can only book AA MileSAAver award space using BA Avios, and it is charged per segment.

ehallison

FYI, You can't use AA miles to book Hawaiian flights from the mainland anymore (as of Sept 2015).

BA is your best bet. I have redeemed 12,500 BA miles for flights on AA and Alaska many times, from the West Coast to Hawaii (always booking 2-4 tickets). That said, I haven't been able to do it since the Hawaiian Airlines inventory went away. I think it really really hurt standard award availability. But if you just need 1 ticket for your friend, and she can be somewhat flexible on her arrival/departure date, hopefully you can find something. Use the AA website to search, and then if the ticket you find is on American, you can book on the BA website. Otherwise you'll have to call BA to book Alaska, but they shouldn't charge you a fee.

Good luck.

Oh, Biggestbopper had a good idea, too. If you can't find availability to OGG, try HNL and ask your friend to pay cash to get to OGG, or if you're feeling really nice you can redeem AA miles for that part.

jacknyoc

IIRC, UA miles thru Singapore Airlines program will provide access to Vir Amer awards. Otherwise BA Avios is the least expensive option LAX-OGG.

hopelesslybourgeois

Thanks so much! Sounds like Hawaiian is out of the question, so I'll check out availability on VA, AA, and Alaska, then give her the options.